Real-time employee health data analytics: The key to reducing healthcare costs for your company

In Malaysia, many working adults have been diagnosed with several non-communicable diseases (NCDs), such as cardiovascular disease and diabetes. A study by the Ministry of Health (MOH) and World Health Organization (WHO) found that these diseases cost the nation RM 2.5 billion in absenteeism and presenteeism.

Let's explore why the issuance of medical drugs, specifically long-term medication (LTM), has been rising in both quantity and prices with the rise of NCDs in the country.

What is long-term medication?

Long-term medications are issued for long-term illness, or chronic health condition is any condition lasting six months or longer, such as asthma, arthritis, cancer, obesity, diabetes, chronic pain or heart disease.

Many long-term illnesses and chronic conditions are increasing in Malaysia and the rest of the world due to various factors, including an ageing population and lifestyle issues such as smoking and poor diet.

Medical Expenditure Rate

Source: The impact of NCD and Their Risk Factors on Malaysia's GDP

The graph above represents private healthcare expenditure over six years, whereby outpatient medication dispensation alone has increased by 97.47%.

As prescription drug costs have risen, many employees have had to pay more or share the cost through insurance. When an employee has no medical coverage, the problem of high medication costs becomes more prominent.

This is because many Malaysians have adopted unhealthy lifestyles like smoking, being physically inactive, eating unhealthy food, and drinking alcohol. Their weight has increased due to their access to fast and instant food, and cardiovascular disease levels have also increased.

Cholesterol Level

High cholesterol can cause a dangerous accumulation of cholesterol and other deposits on the walls of your arteries (atherosclerosis).

These deposits (plaques) can reduce blood flow through your arteries, which can cause complications, such as: coronary artery disease, aneurysms and chronic kidney disease.

Diabetes Level

High blood sugar, or hyperglycemia, can cause long-term diabetes-related complications such as: Cardiovascular disease (CVD), Nerve damage (neuropathy), Kidney damage (diabetic nephropathy) or kidney failure, damage to the blood vessels of the retina that could lead to blindness.

Obesity Levels

Obesity is a burden to health in many ways. It can affect your ability to reproduce and stay healthy, memory, and mood. Obesity also increases the risk of several diseases, including diabetes, heart disease, and certain types of cancer.

Among the other issue faced by these individuals are

1) Many are not aware they are suffering from non-communicable diseases. The same study reported that those who suffer from such disease but remain unaware of the situation are: diabetes (9.2%), hypertension (17.2%), and hypercholesterolemia (38.6%).

2) Employees with poor control over the NCD will be at risk of developing disabilities. Individuals with a stroke may develop hemiparesis, which is considered a physical impairment and restrict their mobility to be productive.

What should HR leaders be doing to support their workforce better?

In order to reduce absenteeism, corporations must take a look at their health care histories and identify the diseases they have contracted.

A wellness program would be the best approach, as it allows employees to receive medical advice and counselling to get their health in check before it worsens.To start a wellness program, you must collect and analyse data points from the HealthMetrics platform.

This can be easily accessible to our corporate HR, regardless of the plan subscription. Head over to the portal and select the "Treatments Tab" and select "Treatments Report".

You can prevent workplace illness by identifying the common diseases contracted by your workforce. For example, suppose URTI and Fever are the most prevalent illnesses in your organisation. In that case, you should consider vaccinating your employees to protect them against these diseases, as these diseases or viruses can quickly spread. You eventually save more as employees take fewer days off.

You can click here to learn more about our company's guide on creating an ultimate wellness program, or contact [email protected] to simplify a wellness program for your organisation.

The complete guide to corporate wellness

A must read for HR creating a healthy and happy working environment

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How does HealthMetrics E-Pharmacy have a module for your medication needs?

Origin Pharmacy is part of the HealthMetrics medication dispensing arm, which offers a suite of tech-enabled services to give you the power to control medicine efficiently.

What are the benefits of switching towards Origin Pharmacy?

• Enjoy savings of acute and LTM medication by 20%
• Get reminders on your long-term medication refill
• Request or order for medicine refill through the HealthMetrics application
• For those without a prescription, members can connect with our telemedicine provider.
• Receive your medicines at your doorstep with free delivery within the Klang Valley

Origin provides a wide range of pharmaceutical products, including originator and generic medications, health supplements, and medical devices. If you're interested in signing up, kindly click the banner below for details.

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Real-time employee health data analytics: The key to reducing healthcare costs for your company

Cholesterol Level

Diabetes Level

Obesity Levels

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